Geoffrey Lofthouse, general manager; Arwel Jones, executive head chef and Rhys Jones, fitness instructor are undertaking a 300 mile cycle challenge from Beaulieu in Hampshire to Llandudno in over three days to raise money for the Wales Air Ambulance.
The cyclists will take to the road on Tuesday 9 June, and have set themselves an impressive target of 100 miles to cover every day in order to reach The Imperial Hotel on Thursday 11 June.
Day One will see them start at the Montagu Arms in Beaulieu with the first leg through the New Forest National Park to Salisbury. The cyclists will then go through the Pewsey Downs and Fyfield Down National Reserves on their way to Royal Wotton Bassett and then Cirencester before arriving at their planned overnight stop in Cheltenham. This first leg, which they aim to do in just over six hours, will see them travel 104 miles with about 4,500 feet of climbing.
Day Two will see them depart from Cheltenham following the River Severn for a bit before heading towards Great Malvern, Bridgnorth and Coalport, and then join the A41 to Newport for their second overnight stop.
Day three is the home straight but it’ll probably be the toughest leg. They’ll set off from Newport through Wem to Ellesmere crossing over the Welsh border south of Chirk making their way up to the Welsh coastline. From Holywell they’ll head to Rhyl, Colwyn Bay and Rhos on Sea before making their descent to Llandudno and along the Promenade to the finish line at The Imperial Hotel.
Commenting on behalf of the team, Geoff Lofthouse said: “We have set ourselves quite a challenge and providing we keep at a brisk pace we aim to arrive at The Imperial Hotel late afternoon on Thursday 11 June. We are delighted that our efforts will help raise funds for the Wales Air Ambulance, which provides emergency air cover for those who face life-threatening illness or injuries. The charity costs over £6 million a year to run and as they are totally reliant on public and corporate donations we were only too happy to lend our support to this vital service.”
Medwyn Hughes, WAA community coordinator: “Geoffrey, Arwel and Rhys have set themselves an incredible challenge, and we’re thrilled they have chosen to cycle this distance in aid of Wales Ambulance. Every mile will help to keep our helicopters in the air and saving lives across Wales.”
The Imperial Hotel team will be joined by 15 members of staff from its sister hotels; Careys Manor and The Montagu Arms who are raising money for the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Air Ambulance.
If you would like to sponsor The Imperial Hotel team please click here.
To find out more about the Wales Air Ambulance please click here.